This month the Federal Housing Finance Agency, in conjunction with Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, revealed new changes to the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) to assist more borrowers.
Borrowers with loans sold to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac before June 1st, 2009, will continue to receive HARP assistance and loan-to-value ratios over 80 percent.
And what are the most significant changes recently made to HARP? Select risk-based fees for borrowers that refinance into shorter-term mortgages have been eliminated, while fees for other borrowers have been lowered. The 125 percent loan-to-value ceiling for fixed-rate mortgages through Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae has also been eliminated.
Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae intend to provide guidance with operational details regarding the HARP changes to mortgage lenders no later than November 15th. Because the mortgage industry’s involvement with HARP isn’t mandatory, implementation policies will vary as individual companies adjust their process.